[11/29] Joqonukk - Tactical Wargames

(Well, sorry for the title, I just tried to lure in some of you people obsessed with the tbleauge viking woman body It is a s28a body, actually. Hope you still enjoy. )




For a long time, the North was spared the plague of the undead, which for decades had advanced unstoppably into the rest of the world, devouring one empire after another. The stories had been heard from mercenaries who had returned, but for most people in the North it remained a distant war, if the stories were believed at all. The sea, the islands, the kraken, nothing could get past them. And even after decades, only a fraction of the Northerners should ever encounter an undead.

For Joqonukk's generation, however, it was different.

Her mother was eight months pregnant when she gave birth to Joqonukk, healthy and strong. It was a good omen for a firstborn, because eight is the sacred number of the Northern peoples, like the eight arms of the Skykraken Yappateru and the eight green trails that lead, protected from the freezing cold, to the Kraken's temple at the top of the world.
Here, at the center of the North Pole, contrary to the cosmic laws, time passes much faster than in the rest of the world. Sometimes a day goes by twice as fast, sometimes a week, a whole month or even a year goes by on a day. Every devote follower of Yappateru should make a pilgrimage to the temple once in his life and leave it as someone else.
But when Joquonukk was born, the temple had long since ceased to be in the hands of the North.

The Empires in the South of the world were desperate in their fight against the overpowering undead, so the Southern leaders hoped for a decisive advantage through access to this sacred place at the North Pole. Here, a year of research could be achieved in one day, for new weapons, tactics, machines, they thought. While the northern peoples wasted all this potential on pagan rituals, as they found. But despite all negotiations, declarations and requests, the peoples of the north were not ready to give up their largest sanctuary for such secular purposes or to have it desecrated by strangers.
A protracted and costly invasion along the green trails began. Despite fierce resistance from the Northerners, they were unable to hold the temple. Too few, too poorly equipped, not as tightly organized as the huge, overpowering military apparatus of allied empires. Contrary to many expectations, in the end the common sense of the victorious and the vanquished equally triumphed: Instead of leading a fight to a bitter end, the Krakenpriests were able to unite the Northerners in the name of Yappateru and convince them that the real fight lies in the deep South, that no longer a living human will kill another of it's kind.

Today the temple grounds are a gathering place for the best scholars from all over the world, a place of research and hope. And a fortress. Many locals do not believe in the promise that the strangers will voluntarily leave after defeating the mysterious undead, if ever. And Joqonukk and most of her people are denied access. Centuries-old rituals, culture and religion, no longer practicable in one fell swoop. With the fall of the temple, the End Times had begun in the North as well. A time, it was written, of trials in which the Skykraken Yappateru will return to the world - to devour them all, to feed upon the unworthy and to carry the worthy into the new world.

Now, like many other Northerners, Joqonukk is forced to fight alongsie old enemies in a hopeless war against the undead armies.
In the South, these warriors have many names and a special reputation. Especially the young ones who were born after the loss of the temple and now have to prove themselves without a pilgrimage to the North Pole. Wild, brave and bold, relentless and fierce, spiritual, proud, loud and hard-drinking, insane, fearless in the face of death, a fine line between incredible heroism and boundless stupidity. For fear of rebellion, they are only allowed to go into the field in small flocks, but when you hear them drumming and singing, they sound like a whole army. After decades of fighting by the side of their conquerors, winning together and dying together, they have earned the respect they have deserved for so long - many who fought by their side do not consider any magical temple to be the true treasure of the North, but the zeal of these warriors.

That. Is. Beautiful. So cool to see all the new stuff you created was for a female figure. Really dig her entire outfit. And the hair and tattoos are awesome. Super impressed as always.

Oooo this warrior looks awesome! Well done Ovy! Can I ask which headsculpt you customized or did you sculpt yourself? Looks great!

It looks like one of those bootleg Carol Danvers heads to me.

Gorgeous work Ovy, in every sense of the word. I'm glad we already had a chance to admire the armor and weaponry by itself, but it is beautifully deployed on such a nicely crafted custom figure, and fully-developed character with a complex and interesting back story. Nice to see her both fully armed and also in "civvies," looking equally complete and cool. I think Mark is right about the head, and I like what you have done with it (and not just because it is now less recognizable as the actress on whom it was based). I should compliment your choice of music and the placement of the music video (which I was able to enjoy throughout the reading and visual appreciation).

Stryker2011 wrote:That. Is. Beautiful. So cool to see all the new stuff you created was for a female figure. Really dig her entire outfit. And the hair and tattoos are awesome. Super impressed as always.

Oh, that's why it looks familiar, although Ovy's looks a million times better!

Stryker2011 wrote:That. Is. Beautiful. So cool to see all the new stuff you created was for a female figure. Really dig her entire outfit. And the hair and tattoos are awesome. Super impressed as always.

Thanks. So. Much!   Yeah actually this was supposed to be a much less complicated armor with two pieces of leather only and maybe some nails, I don't know, but when I looked for Lamellae on the 3d sites I knew I had to do one. I think that is the first figure I made that has customized and haired head, bodypainting, custom clothing with leather fur and fabric and 3d printed elements.

(well, also like Jaroyesz who has a 3d printed helmet, but her Gambeson is factory made at least)

Really glad you enjoy, and of course you spotted the head right.

csyeung wrote:Oooo this warrior looks awesome! Well done Ovy! Can I ask which headsculpt you customized or did you sculpt yourself? Looks great!

Thanks a lot!

Stryker2011 wrote:It looks like one of those bootleg Carol Danvers heads to me.

Yeah although it is by Mancotoys, who happen to have made the Ruby Rose head I used for her Southern Imperial counterpart Jaroyesz. And they made a Trinity head, which I also happen to own. So I am a good customer I think, even though I replace the hair.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mancotoys-1-6-MC002-Captain-Marvel-Head-Sculpt-Carved-F-12-Female-Figure-Body-/154096781721?_ul=IN

GubernatorFan wrote:Gorgeous work Ovy, in every sense of the word. I'm glad we already had a chance to admire the armor and weaponry by itself, but it is beautifully deployed on such a nicely crafted custom figure, and fully-developed character with a complex and interesting back story. Nice to see her both fully armed and also in "civvies," looking equally complete and cool. I think Mark is right about the head, and I like what you have done with it (and not just because it is now less recognizable as the actress on whom it was based). I should compliment your choice of music and the placement of the music video (which I was able to enjoy throughout the reading and visual appreciation).

Thanks so much.  And yeah the civiies are rudimentary, maybe one day I will find the patience and skill to make a non combat outfit, a t shirt and a skirt or something, but this works for now. As this is the s28a body some chest binding was required, but that body was most fitting, there is just more mass and power, especially the arms. It is actually Chyvlanska's old body.
What is it with you an the dislike for the actress? Oh well maybe I don't want to know, really.  And yeah, the music is from the game Banner Saga, it's a beautiful merge of brilliant interactive storytelling, beautiful timeless art design and round strategy. But also so very sad and tragic, which makes it even more impactful and interesting. By the way did you listen to the entire music piece? At 7:39 it changes to a beautiful chorus.


These are all the WIP Pics I found, I had to rebuild the back of the head (gummy scalp), I think it was polymere clay and Superglue to close the gaps and then a lot of sanding before I startet painting. I later blended body and head with the same pastels and acrylic tones.


Test loc hair, already mentioned in the Southern Warrior thread.


And the lamellae, I think I alread covered those in the Jaroyesz thread? Well self explaining, scale, print, paint, weather, sew.





I remember when I made these, Spooky had recommended watching Jupiter's Legacy. I sewed one, later two rows per episode together, haha.

I really enjoyed the extra shots (including WIP) of the head and pieces and paint. Awesome. Your work on the head is perfect, but I wonder about pastel (which you also mentioned elsewhere) -- wouldn't it simply rub off, or is that on purpose?

Well, you already know I love it....but I will say it again  -- she's beautiful!!! As always, a fascinating backstory and great accompanying soundtrack choice. The work you did on her head prior to giving her the hair is amazing and adds so much to the realism.  For me, one of the most standout features of this figure is the colour scheme.... the blue and yellow combination is seemingly simple but so, so striking. It's just really gorgeous to look at. Well done.

Love the behind the scenes step-by-step process. Impressive to say the least.

Ovy , that is one of the best custom made figures I have seen in a long long time , I don`t have any such time wise figures in my collection , but I like to see them . Fantastic work , the whole caboodle !

Ohhhh! I LOVE her! I’m getting Eivor from AC: Valhalla vibes!
Once again, your attention to detail in the armour and weaponry is phenomenal but the whole figure works so well!

Awesome music for an awesome figure, I loved the last 3 minutes (I could envision the epic conclusion of a viking battle as I scrolled through the pics, with Joqonukk slashing through opponent after opponent to her last breath.) I know my musical taste is all over the place, but this is the kind of stuff that I would like to get more into for general aural creative inspiration. (Any recommendations? )

Onto the figure itself, you have done a masterful job at customizing all the armor but this is no surprise. You're also killing it with these dreadlock hair mods as of late. Tattoos look great, too - maybe it's just my weird brain but in the fifth pic it looks like some kind of squid across her left eye. Cool nonetheless, maybe Joqonukk has some kind of fascination for sea creatures.

Nice work Ovy! she looks fierce!

OH YEEEESSSS!!! She looks awesome!! Beautiful choice of a sculpt for a northener, too! 
I really appreciated the story, too. And... Thank you for the music!

Love the Kraken tattoos, the dreads and of course the overall truly ridiculously impressive outfit.
I quite like the those WIP shots of the hair test. It's a great look, though I supposed not all that practical with the helmet. (Which she would never wear on my shelf cause she's too damn pretty!)

I am looking forward to the additional characters!

Absolutely beautiful work on her, the armor and weapons really are the best. Her tattoos are also very cool as is the hairdo.

This is a very cool heroine. The work on the custom armor and weapons is outstanding. I really envy your skills in designing and 3D-printing such complicated pieces.

Thanks for sharing.

Despite lack of uniformly equipment, different doctrines and language barriers, they stand their ground.















(Roy still wearing her old helmet and no gauntlets, I startet updating them now but no photos yet)

GubernatorFan wrote:I really enjoyed the extra shots (including WIP) of the head and pieces and paint. Awesome. Your work on the head is perfect, but I wonder about pastel (which you also mentioned elsewhere) -- wouldn't it simply rub off, or is that on purpose?

Thanks so much. And well, sealing it with alcohol and mixing it with acrylics kinda holds on the head.

skywalkersaga wrote:Well, you already know I love it....but I will say it again  -- she's beautiful!!! As always, a fascinating backstory and great accompanying soundtrack choice. The work you did on her head prior to giving her the hair is amazing and adds so much to the realism.  For me, one of the most standout features of this figure is the colour scheme.... the blue and yellow combination is seemingly simple but so, so striking. It's just really gorgeous to look at. Well done.

Thanks so much. Yeah the color scheme, I knew I would make yellow cloth and blue facepaint, but didn't now then I would paint the shield and helmet too.
Ikea and the Swedish flag use it too, although I use a rather grayish blue.

Stryker2011 wrote:Love the behind the scenes step-by-step process. Impressive to say the least.

Thanks a lot.

Chip wrote:Ovy , that is one of the best custom made figures I have seen in a long long time , I don`t have any such time wise figures in my collection , but I like to see them . Fantastic work , the whole caboodle !

That is very nice of you to write, thanks so much!

Lynkhart wrote:Ohhhh! I LOVE her! I’m getting Eivor from AC: Valhalla vibes!
Once again, your attention to detail in the armour and weaponry is phenomenal but the whole figure works so well!

Thanks so much! On another forum that AC: Valhalla character was mentioned too. If I knew about her before hand I would have looked at the many great fantasy viking customizing options for inspiration. But well she is not the "Last Viking".

AlKelAstra91 wrote:Awesome music for an awesome figure, I loved the last 3 minutes (I could envision the epic conclusion of a viking battle as I scrolled through the pics, with Joqonukk slashing through opponent after opponent to her last breath.) I know my musical taste is all over the place, but this is the kind of stuff that I would like to get more into for general aural creative inspiration. (Any recommendations? )

Onto the figure itself, you have done a masterful job at customizing all the armor but this is no surprise. You're also killing it with these dreadlock hair mods as of late. Tattoos look great, too - maybe it's just my weird brain but in the fifth pic it looks like some kind of squid across her left eye. Cool nonetheless, maybe Joqonukk has some kind of fascination for sea creatures.

Thanks a lot, I have some Youtube Playlists with similar stuff as my musical taste is all over the place too,  if I think of it I will give you some recommendations.

I like this one a lot. In the right story context it can put pipi in the eyes of a grown man.
It's playing at the end of the first game.

Don't read the comment section, it is super sad real life wise and regarding spoilers, haha...

Oh and before I start explaining anything about Squid tattoos and facination for sea creatures, you should really read that introduction text.  

BAMComix wrote:Nice work Ovy! she looks fierce!

Thanks a lot!

Diana wrote:OH YEEEESSSS!!! She looks awesome!! Beautiful choice of a sculpt for a northener, too! 
I really appreciated the story, too. And... Thank you for the music!

Love the Kraken tattoos, the dreads and of course the overall truly ridiculously impressive outfit.
I quite like the those WIP shots of the hair test. It's a great look, though I supposed not all that practical with the helmet. (Which she would never wear on my shelf cause she's too damn pretty!)

I am looking forward to the additional characters!

THANKSSSS!!! Glad you liek both figure and story. And music. Ridiculously impressive is a nice description. And don't worry about the hair, in the front row the braids are only attached at the tip so they can bent in all directions, but I don't have any good photos showing that off yet.

Randam Hajile wrote:This is a very cool heroine. The work on the custom armor and weapons is outstanding. I really envy your skills in designing and 3D-printing such complicated pieces.

Thanks for sharing.  

Thanks a lot!

Very cool battle line up. They may not match, but I guess they went on a common quest to throw a ring in a volcano and instantly return the undead to the dead.

What a cool gathering of fighters. When push comes to shove, despite differences, many people fighting for the same purpose often overlook those differences — happens a lot in real life.

Very exciting to see your lineup of warriors!

Kinda reminds me of Buliwyf's band of fighters in 13th Warrior.

I meant to say earlier but I just love your worldbuilding, it’s so unlike anything else and has so much scope for future figures and cultures!

Fantastic work on the armor and the headsculpt is a piece of art. Another unique character. I love figures You can´t buy.

Between battles, there is rest, boredem and intellectual challenges.

GubernatorFan wrote:Very cool battle line up. They may not match, but I guess they went on a common quest to throw a ring in a volcano and instantly return the undead to the dead.

Haha, thanks. Well there probably won't be a conveniant army-instant kill button like in LotR or Star Wars. Their quest is survival mostly, maybe finding a nice bathhouse,  they are remnants of destroyed armies after a lost major battle.

Stryker2011 wrote:What a cool gathering of fighters. When push comes to shove, despite differences, many people fighting for the same purpose often overlook those differences — happens a lot in real life.

Thanks! Yeah that's a theme of this universe, different people getting their (censored) together to survive.

skywalkersaga wrote:Very exciting to see your lineup of warriors!

Thanks!

shazzdan wrote:Kinda reminds me of Buliwyf's band of fighters in 13th Warrior.

Haha, yeah they had this conanesque vibe. I will try to figure out an Arabic themed fantasy figure too.

Lynkhart wrote:I meant to say earlier but I just love your worldbuilding, it’s so unlike anything else and has so much scope for future figures and cultures!

Thanks so much, this is so good to read the worldbuilding feels unique to you!

Ephiane wrote:Fantastic work on the armor and the headsculpt is a piece of art. Another unique character. I love figures  You can´t buy.

Thanks a lot, your people are a great inspiration!